Colagiovanni,  Marc. When Things Aren’t Going Right, Go Left. Illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds. New York: Orchard Books, 2023.

Guide to categories : Kid Review – review of books for elementary-aged and younger children

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Summary

“One day for no particular reason, nothing was going right. Absolutely positively, nothing was going right. So, I decided to go left…”

Told through creative language play, and with depth and whimsy, this picture book reminds readers of their own agency and the power they have to direct their own path. Marc Colagiovanni’s lyrical text and Peter H. Reynolds’s stunning art create an enduring message of strength and perseverance that is both universal and personal, and one that readers will be drawn to over and over again.

This first of two new picture books created in collaboration with Marc and Peter will inspire, affirm, and reassure readers at key milestone moments in every young reader’s life. When Things Aren’t Going Right, Go Left makes an inspiring graduation gift as well as a must-have, uplifting read sure to bring positivity to all who read it and remind us that even when nothing is going right… we can always choose to go left.

Purchase When Things Aren’t Going Right, Go Left on Amazon-https://amzn.to/3tzJMWh

My Kid Review

Sometimes adults don’t realize it but kids suffer from some of the same mental health/mindset issues as adults – worry, fear, frustration, etc. Marc Colagiovanni’s book When Things Aren’t Going Right, Go Left could help children leave behind the negative thought patterns that are holding them back. 

Peter H. Reynold’s art work does a great job of illustrating to children the idea of leaving those negative thought patterns behind. 

When Things Aren’t Going Right, Go Left would be a good addition to a K-12 Christian school library. The only thing that would have made it better for Christian schools would have been if the book had been written to include a reliance on God for help to leave behind the negative thoughts. The book is written for an early elementary audience but older elementary students could learn from it as well. 

I received a complimentary copy of When Things Aren’t Going Right, Go Left. This is my honest review.

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